Relics of ritual performances at the Piano del Tamburino. Himera

Boglione, Marcella (16 May 2023). Relics of ritual performances at the Piano del Tamburino. Himera (Unpublished). In: THE ATHENS GREEK RELIGION SEMINAR.

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The archaeological excavations which are taking place in an area called Piano del Tamburino, a part of the Greek colony of Himera in Sicily, have brought to light evidence of ritual practices. The on-site research deals with various reconstructions of “ritual behaviour and meanings” and the problems related to cultic and ritual religious phenomena in the Greek world. In order to obtain a solid database on which to start the research, all the types of material classes involved in the formation of the "votive assemblages" found in the two areas were analysed paying particular attention to the significance of the dedicated objects. The individual assemblages are presented with a critical eye in relation to their context of occurrence.
The analysis of the context in particular assumes that the votive assemblage, or the votive deposit, should be considered as an archaeological category in its own right and should be analysed as such. These terms are here taken to mean a coherent set of materials of different types and nature brought together for ritual activity, the result of an intentional choice. The deposit itself can have different variants that reflect the occasion that determined its creation. Recognizing the contextual elements has made it possible to isolate the motivation, albeit not always exclusive, that generated the deposit and attempt to place it in one of the categories proposed.
The deposit-altar ST43 within the so-called Area 12, the best-preserved deposit on the Piano del Tamburino, could be a good example to help understand both the ritual dynamic and the motivation besides the deposition itself. Moreover, ST43 could be used to underline the difference between the deposition of miniature and normal-sized vessels inside a pit. The understanding of the peculiarity of the ceramic employed in ceremonies would help us in the reconstruction of the ritual practices and dynamics for the Area 12 and will allow us to compare this area with other sacred situations in Sicily and Magna Graecia.

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